Icelandic painter, Katrin Fridriks, brings her beautifully abstract show to London from Friday 8th March - Saturday 27th April. A landmark exhibition, ‘GREY AREA’ will see Katrin become the first female artist to have her own solo show at the JD Malat Gallery - just in time for International Women’s Day on 8th March.

30 major works, including various installations, make up the exquisite exhibition. Katrin’s interest in the work of Nikola Tesla and his idea for clean and free energy has propelled much of her work and she credits Tesla as the main inspiration behind ‘GREY AREA’. In her journey of discovery into the Serbian Scientist’s studies, she got fascinated by a number of things she encountered on her way, raising topics which are there for everyone to see but are rarely looked at. "If you want to find the secrets of the Universe, think in terms of Energy, Frequency & Vibration" Nikola Tesla once said.

‘GREY AREA’ stemmed from the idea that colours are expressed through a frequency. The extremes of this frequency range are identified by our visual senses with the colours black and white, but in between these two colours there is an area where few people dare to go - just like in life. The grey area. This exhibition represents all that is unseen, unsaid and unspoken.

Katrin and her graphic designer teamed up with writer Sebastian Di Giovanni to create a book that would represent ‘GREY AREA’, pushing the boundaries of what a show catalog would typically look like. Once conceptualised, the precious booklets were bound by hand in Japanese fashion and printed in thermo-chromatic ink which is only visible by touch, leaving the catalog to reveal its secrets whilst you immerse yourself in the exhibition. Katrin’s work fuses the natural energies of her native Iceland with abstract expressionism. Through her paintings, Katrin explores speed, gravity and the interactions between humans and the forces of nature- focusing on the exploration of natural phenomena and the limits of human dexterity.

The creative process begins long before the painting itself for Katrin. To get into what she refers to as ‘production mode’, Katrin prepares herself by living in her studio with no distractions other than electronic music. “I need to align myself, body and my mind, with a specific vibration for each piece to be able to express its full potential on canvas” Katrin explains. The preparation is both mental and physical, Katrin puts herself into a meditative state, eating light meals and training her body. It is important that she is in shape for the painting process, as choreographed movements and carrying barrels of paint make up a large part of how Katrin assembles the works. Katrin has also mastered the preparation of her materials, carefully controlling the density of her paints so they react with each other, from here she will calculate the speed and angle at which she will throw her materials on to the canvas.

Katrin describes her work as explosive, with a lot of energy. Her compositions are an extension of her thoughts , in a constant state of flux, moving and flowing around endlessly. “I feel very excited about showing in London, it is one of my favorite cities and a landmark in the art world. I’m proud to present my work at JD Malat Gallery for our first show together, opening on International Women’s Day” Katrin expresses.

Katrin’s notoriety is mainly based on her paintings and installations, one of which is installed at the Olympic stadium in Nîmes. She also showcased in Venice in 2015 during the 56th Art Biennale and at the Reykjavik Art Museum, the Arts Center in Seoul in 2013 as well as the Liverpool Biennale in 2008. In 2017 - 2018, in association with Avant-Arte, Katrin tackled an issue close to her heart through her edition project titled ‘Waste’. ‘Waste’ saw Katrin work with Icelandic scientist Loftur Reimar and art critic and philosopher Klaus Speidel. Katrin has received commissions from Ralph Lauren, Land Rover, Pictures on Wall, Bacardi Martini and more